


Cotton candy-boy

by makerofaqueen



Series: Cotton candy [1]
Category: Percy Jackson and the Olympians & Related Fandoms - All Media Types, Percy Jackson and the Olympians - Rick Riordan
Genre: Conchell, Foreplay, Fourth of July, M/M, Nico ships Conchell, Nudity, Panic Attack, References to Sex, Underage Drinking, gay relationship, solangelo, that's mostly Apollo, that's mostly Will
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2017-01-25
Updated: 2017-01-25
Packaged: 2018-09-19 22:29:50
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 7,629
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/9463067
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/makerofaqueen/pseuds/makerofaqueen
Summary: Mitchell has been crushing on his best friend for a while but since his best friend is also crushing on someone he is to nervous to make a move. If he could only find out who it is... and if that wasn't enough he also has to help his other best friend with his crush. It's... a handful.So: underage drinking, some foreplay, references to sex, a little blood, they shoot each other with arrows and Mitchell has a slight panic attack. No angst though, just his Aphrodite abilities going haywire. If you're not comfortable, don't read. I care abour your mental health.





	

**Author's Note:**

> I've been working on this for a while and now it's finally done! Thanks to everything else I have to do, because procrastination is my hobby and writer's block is best cured with fan fiction. Also, I figured you guys deserved a longer fic what with all the short stuff I've posted these past days.
> 
> So here you have it. Hope you like it!

Connor Stoll had a problem. Like, a huge problem. Okay, maybe not huge, but at least it was 6” tall with a well sculpted archer’s chest, light brown hair, hazel eyes and a deep dimple in its left cheek.  He was currently watching said problem climb the lava rock wall. From below. The sight was exquisite. So what if he was swooning, at least he was aware of it, totally unlike other people at this camp who were painfully oblivious about their feelings. More on that later.

‘You’re drooling.’

Connor looked down on his half-brother and furiously tried to wipe his mouth but came up dry. Cecil just smirked at him.

‘Metaphorically speaking, of course.’

‘Oh, that’s a big word, Markowitz.’

‘I know. I feel quite proud of myself.’

‘Can you spell it?’

‘Don’t push it Stoll, or I might just tell that boy up there about your immense crush on him.’

Connor muttered something about treacherous younger brothers under his breath while he looked up again. The two climbers had reached the top and was now fist bumping each other before sliding down the ropes. Will Solace and Mitchell Doe touch ground in front of the two Hermes boys. Mitchell was beaming.

‘Did you see that? I totally beat him!’

‘I did see,’ Connor smiled. ‘You were a regular squirrel up there.’

‘I knew all those extra pushups had to account for something.’

Will was grumbling.

‘Oh come on now, Solace,’ Cecil said and shoved him in the shoulder. ‘Someone was bound to beat you eventually. You’re not really that quick you know, you just have really long arms and legs, you know, like an orangutan.’ Will frowned at this while Cecil continued, unfazed. ‘And Mitch is only an inch or so shorter than you are.’

‘Yeah, so how come Connor can’t beat me?’

Connor shrugged. ‘I’m just not that invested in winning.’

‘How about we make it a little interesting?’

‘Not happening, Solace.’

‘I never thought I’d see the day when a Stoll would back down from a challenge.’

Connor scraped his bare feet in the grass. ‘Well maybe some other time. I didn’t sleep well tonight.’

‘You really don’t look that well, Con.’ Mitchell said. ‘Were you up all night?’

‘Something like that.’

Mitchell reached his hand out but Connor backed away. ‘Nu-uh, don’t go and pull that empath-shit on me, Mitchell. Just… don’t.’

‘Oh come on, Con, I wasn’t…’

But Connor was already stomping off, fuming. Will looked at Mitchell with raised eyebrows. ‘What’s his problem?’

‘Eh, he’s been grumpy all day. Or now that I think of it, like several days,’ Cecil said with a shrug. ‘He’ll come around.’

Mitchell turned around and busied himself with getting his harness off. Connor was in love, and had been for a while now, he knew that much but today he had been sad as well. People always thought that he had to touch them to pick up on their feelings but it was more like a general aura that they exuded. He sighed. He wanted to try and talk to Connor but he was avoiding Mitchell, always muttering things about stupid Aphrodite boys with dangerous abilities.

Will came up and nudged him on the shoulder. ‘Come on, let’s hit the showers before dinner. You smell, and I’m pretty sure I do too,’ he said and grimaced.

 

\---------------------------

 

‘What in everything that is holy?!’ Mitchell exclaimed, because not even when he was really angry could he use cusswords.

‘Problem?’ Will peeked over the wall of the shower stall. That boy did not have any concept of personal space. Then he started laughing. Mitchell did not appreciate being naked when Will was laughing at him.

‘It’s not funny!’

‘It’s kinda funny, Mitch. At least now we know what Stoll was doing by the rock climbing wall.’

Mitchell wrapped a towel around his waist and went out to have a look in the mirror. His hair was blue with pink highlights in the bangs. ‘He couldn’t at least have picked two colors that actually goes well together?’ Mitchell sighed.

‘The boy exclusively wears cargo shorts Mitchell, I don’t think he would know.’

‘He’s a disgrace to gay men everywhere.’

Will just chuckled in response. Mitchell sighed. ‘So what am I supposed to do with this?’

‘I don’t think you have much choice other than to wear it proudly,’ Will said. ‘If that’s the same thing they got me with a year ago its Lou Ellen’s recipe and it sticks like glue. You can’t wash it out, it has to grow out and it takes about a month before you can dye it again. Just style it like you normally do and pretend like you enjoy it.’

‘Hecate-magic hair dye?’

‘Hecate-magic hair dye.’

Will walked up to him and started pulling at his hair with his fingertips. Mitchell looked at the other boy’s reflection in the mirror. ‘Will?’

‘Yeah?’

‘Don’t do my hair while you’re naked.’

Will froze in his movements but still held a couple of locks of hair between his fingers. ‘Too close?’

Mitchell rolled his eyes. ‘You think? You really need to learn some boundaries, you know.’

‘Di Angelo said the same thing the other day.’

‘How’s that going by the way?’

‘He just doesn’t get it,’ Will whined.

Mitchell rubbed body lotion on himself while he spoke. ‘I’ve been telling you for weeks that you can’t drop hints on that boy. It’s confusing him. He doesn’t understand what you’re doing. I think you have to just man up and tell him.’

Will was sitting on the bench with his chin resting in his hands and his elbows on his knees. He was still naked. Mitchell wished he would put some clothes on already. It didn’t matter that camp was a really accepting place because gossip still spread like wildfire and when two gay boys were naked together for too long in the dressing room that was food for gossip. Never mind that they were like brothers.

‘I’ve tried, Mitch, okay? I really have. But every time I do I freeze up and start stuttering and I’m telling you, he’s starting to think that there’s something seriously wrong with me.’

‘I thought you were gonna confess your undying love for him when you had him stuck in your infirmary the last time but nooooo.’ Mitchell had moved on to doing his make-up while Will was _still_ naked. ‘How many times are the boy gonna have to be sick before you get your head out of your ass?’ He took a long look at himself in the mirror. ‘Okay, so all made up I don’t look half bad with this hair.’

‘Nico would rock that hair,’ Will said dreamily. Mitchell rolled his eyes.

‘Will you put some clothes on? We have to go to dinner now.’

When he turned around Will was already dressed. Okay, so when did that happen? Mitchell eyed him with an amused look on his face. He was wearing a Hawaiian shirt and surfer shorts. When he bent over to grab his bag Mitchell realized he wasn’t wearing underwear. Hadn’t they had a long talk about the importance of underwear just last week? Mitchell sighed. He decided to focus on the most pressing matter. ‘Speaking of disgracing gay men everywhere. At least Connor wears plaid shirts. This is an abomination.’

‘It’s the same one Nico wore when he came back to camp. I love it.’

‘Of course you do. And _why_ do you have it?’

‘Because he was going to throw it away but I told him I wanted it so he said I could have it.’

‘He’s a clever boy.’

Will sighed. ‘I know.’

‘You’re swooning, Solace.’

‘You say that like it’s a bad thing.’

Mitchell grabbed his bag and walked out the door without giving him an answer. When they got to the dining pavilion the two boys separated and went to their respective tables. Mitchell passed the Hermes table and winked at Connor who was staring at him. ‘Thank you,’ he mouthed and pointed to his hair. Connor ducked his head and stared at the tabletop instead. Travis looked at his brother. ‘So, yeah, that backfired.’

‘He looks like a fucking hot topic model,’ Connor whined. ‘He wasn’t supposed to rock it like that.’

‘Did you somehow forget that you’re dealing with _the_ prettiest boy in the cabin of prettiest boys?’ Cecil asked. ‘Of course he was going to rock it. What are you, an idiot? Wait, don’t bother answering that. Oh! He’s coming over.’

Connor did his best to hide his blush behind Travis when Mitchell came over to their table. He had dropped off his bag by his own table and now he slid himself onto the bench beside Cecil.

‘Hello boys,’ he said with a smirk on his face.

‘Hi Mitch, what’s up?’ Travis asked, having realized that his brother was in no condition to talk right now.

‘So, I need a favor.’

‘Yeah?’

‘I want to teach Solace a lesson.’

‘Oh, you want us to prank Solace?’ Travis asked. ‘We are always up for that! What did you have in mind?’

‘Cecil, remember that talk we had with William the other day about the importance of underwear? Well, we just came from the showers and apparently it totally went over his head. I’m just going to leave that statement here and go now. If you decide to act upon it, you didn’t hear it from me.’

He smiled at them and walked away to his own table. Connor sighed. ‘He smells like flowers.’

Cecil had a mischievous grin on his face. The one people called ‘the Hermes grin’ because they all had it. ‘Oh this is too good to pass up.’

‘Wait, did he mean Solace isn’t wearing boxers?’ Travis asked.

‘Mhm. And turn around, he is also wearing loosely fitted surfer shorts.’

Connor and Travis did as Cecil asked and indeed, in Hermes logic, Will was practically begging for it.

‘So, you wanna do it?’ Travis asked Connor.

‘Nah, you do it. I don’t really feel up to it.’

Cecil leaned over the table and held his hand against Connor’s forehead. ‘Well, you don’t have a fever.’

‘Shut up Cecil.’

They looked at Travis who was already moving. Will was busying himself with getting his dinner on his plate so his hands were full. Travis waited before he was on his way to his table before he pretended to trip. While he fell he grabbed Will’s shorts pulling them down with him. Will was staring at him with chock on his face and Travis could do nothing more than lie on his back and laugh. People started laughing along with him. It took several moments before someone actually got up and relieved Will of his plates so he could pull his shorts up. Connor was looking at Mitchell who was holding his stomach and laughing and then he looked over at the Hade’s table and noticed the flushed look at Nico’s face. He made a mental note of that. Okay, so maybe not as oblivious as Will made him out to be, after all.

 

\---------------------------

 

Nico was sitting on the grass watching Will practice archery when Connor walked up to him. He sat down beside the younger boy. ‘Did you enjoy the show the other day?’

Nico didn’t look at him but Connor was watching him closely. The boy was blushing. Score, Connor thought.

‘Which one do you mean?’ Nico asked, his voice way too high pitched to be natural.

‘The striptease one.’

‘Uhm. Wasn’t that a little mean?’

‘Maybe, but it was for a good cause. Mitchell has been trying to get him to wear boxers for a long time now. He seemed to think Will needed to realize why.’

‘Some boyfriend he is.’

Connor looked at Nico. ‘Boyfriend?’

Nico twirled his ring and looked down at the grass. ‘Yeah, I mean, they’re spending a lot of time together and they’re so comfortable in each other’s company I just thought…’

Connor started laughing. He actually, seriously laughed out loud for a few minutes before he became serious again. ‘He doesn’t spend half as much time with Mitchell as he spends with you, so with that logic you should be his boyfriend.’

Nico blushed profusely and glared at Connor. ‘Are you trying to trick me into coming out to you, Stoll?’

‘No. I couldn’t care less whether you’re out to me or not, as long as you’re out to yourself,’ Connor said with a dead serious impression on his face as he stood up, brushed off and left. He caught a glimpse of Nico’s dropped jaw when he left. He knew he had been on to something. Priceless.

 

\---------------------------

 

‘He is crushing on someone, you know.’ Mitchell sat on a cot while Will tended to his burn. Will paused in the applying of the soothing salve and looked at him.

‘Who?’

‘Nico, duh.’

‘No, I mean who is he crushing on?’

‘How should I know? I can’t tell that.’

‘That is some really un-useful abilities you have.’

‘Don’t I know it. Has he told you about anyone? You’re his best friend here besides Grace.’

‘No, not a thing. He… I don’t even know what his preferences are.’

‘I think it’s pretty clear what his preferences are.’ When Will made a ‘huh? – face’ Mitchell explained: ‘Straight boys don’t wear pants that tight.’

‘You’re basing your “knowledge” of his sexual preferences on the fact that he wears skinny jeans?’

‘Yes. Also, I have a stellar gaydar.’

‘That’s not really a thing.’

‘What’s not really a thing?’ Connor asked as he entered the infirmary. He was bleeding from a wound on his ribs.

‘Gaydar,’ Will explained and frowned. ‘What happened to you?’

Connor sat down on the cot next to Mitchell. ‘Cecil accidentally shot an arrow at me during archery practice. I dodged it, mostly,’ he said as he took off his shirt and his tank top. ‘It’s really just a scratch. Who’s gaydar?’

‘Mitchell’s. You guys really need to stop providing Cecil with weapons. I need to stitch that. Are you sure you’re okay and not just playing brave because there is a pretty boy sitting next to you?’

Connor blushed. ‘Maybe.’

Mitchell simultaneously laughed at him and tried to ignore the fact that Connor was half naked. It was getting harder and harder. ‘Are you calling me pretty? I can hold your hand if you want?’

‘Thanks,’ Connor muttered and turned to Will. ‘And Mitchell’s gaydar is definitely a thing. Who have you picked up on now?’

Mitchell grabbed Connor’s hand, laced their fingers together and looked him dead in the eyes. ‘You’re gay.’

‘Duh. No, but seriously.’

‘He claims di Angelo’s gay. I’d say that’s almost an impossibility since he’s from the forties but I don’t know…’

‘Are you trying to convince yourself that you’re crushing on a straight boy just so you won’t have to do anything abou… Iiiii!’ Connor hissed when Will started stitching him.

‘Maybe.’ Will admitted.

‘No, that’s totally what he’s doing.’ Mitchell disagreed.

‘Shouldn’t I be getting some kind of numbing-thingie while we’re doing this?’ Connor asked.

‘Relax, you’ll be fine. I can give you a lollipop when we’re done.’ Will smirked.

‘Travis says I shouldn’t eat sugar because it gets me hyped up.’

‘You do have problems reeling your hyperactivity in,’ Mitchell agreed. ‘No lollipop.’

‘What did _you_ do to end up in here anyway?’ Connor asked.

‘I climbed the lava wall.’

‘He _tried_ to climb the lava wall. Emphasis on the tried,’ Will said to Connor’s ribs.

‘Hey! I made it half way before it started squirting. Stupid lava.’

‘There’s a pretty sexy burn under that bandage,’ Will offered.

‘Those are two words I never thought I would hear put together.’ Mitchell said. ‘However are you single you charmer you?’

‘You wouldn’t date me if I was the last person on earth and we had to repopulate the whole thing together,’ Will said and started cleaning Connor up.

‘Are you sure you should really be a doctor because as far as I know that’s not how biology works.’

‘Now, now Mitchell, his father is Apollo and allowing his son to become pregnant actually sounds like something Apollo would do,’ Connor said and laughed.

‘Well, in that case, whenever you finally get Nico to make sweet love to you, you should probably use protection, just in case. We don’t want any teen pregnancies here.’

‘Thank you, Mitch, I’ll remember that.’

‘Can you imagine Hades finding out that his son got another boy pregnant?’ Connor said and looked at Mitchell with glee in his eyes.

‘That would be beautiful. Oh Will, can I be this kid’s godfather?’

‘No one is having any kids!’ Will yelled, exasperated.

‘I sure hope not.’

At the sound of Nico’s voice, Mitchell and Connor turned towards the entrance and watched him step inside the infirmary. Will was blushing like he was burning up. Was Mitchell imagining things or was Nico’s aura getting just a little bit brighter when he noticed that? No, it did. It totally did. Connor had a glint in his eyes that Mitchell couldn’t quite place and he was tugging on Mitchell’s hand.

‘Mitch, you need to let go now because I can’t get dressed while you’re holding my hand.’

He looked down, he hadn’t realized that they still had their finger’s interlaced. It had felt so comfortable he totally forgot about it.

‘Uhm… sorry,’ he mumbled and released Connor. He missed the smirk Will was giving Nico behind them.

 

\---------------------------

 

When the other two had left Nico sat down on the cot they had previously occupied. He dangled his feet because he couldn’t quite reach the floor. ‘So do you need help with anything?’ he asked Will.

‘Not really. It’s been a really slow day before those two idiots came in.’

‘You keep calling them idiots but I still see you hanging out with them.’

‘I said they were idiots, I never said I didn’t like them.’

‘Uh-huh. So what was that weird conversation you were having about when I came in?’

Will blushed and wondered briefly how he would explain it and also how much Nico had heard before he made himself known. He settled for half of the truth. ‘I was saying Mitchell and I wouldn’t be dating even if we were the last two people on earth and had to repopulate it and Connor said it would be cool if we could and also that that was totally something he believed my dad would make happen.’

‘That does sound like your dad. Did he ask you out?’

‘Dad?’

‘No, stupid. Mitchell.’

‘No. Why would he do that?’

‘Because you were discussing it.’

‘Yeah. No. NO. Just… no.’

‘Good. You know, I kinda tried to bait Connor a little a few days ago, asking something about you and Mitchell maybe being a couple but he didn’t take it. But… were they holding hands just now?’

‘They totally were. For like ages.’

‘That’s great!’

‘Remind me why we are doing this again.’

‘Because they would be perfect for each other,’ Nico sighed.

 

\---------------------------

 

Mitchell was furious. No, that’s not right because he rarely got furious. He was annoyed, but he _should_ be furious. At least he thought he should be.

This was the fifth time in as many days that Connor had come up to him, carrying Mitchell’s own things and claiming he found them lying around somewhere. Mitchell was positive by now that Connor was picking things out of his pockets when he wasn’t paying attention. Why he was doing that was beyond Mitchell. They were friends, and they should be able to hang out together anyway, it wasn’t like Connor needed a reason to come visit Mitchell in his cabin.

The other thing was that there had started to appear little presents on his bed. Sometimes, when he had been out and about camp for a few hours there would be packages lying on his pillow. They were always wrapped and they were always things he loved. For example when his body lotion was starting to run out it had magically disappeared from his shower bag and then a few hours later Connor had showed up with it, saying he’d found it in the stalls and recognizing it. A couple of days later he found a wrapped tube of lotion on his bed, complete with a little bowtie on and everything. He had found one wrapped up eyeshadow palette at one time and a mascara bottle one time. All his usual brands and all things he usually had to buy from the Stoll Brothers. He had of course asked Connor about this but the boy had only shrugged and said that he had no idea and that Mitchell probably had a secret admirer. But Mitchell didn’t appreciate the gestures and he thought it would be better if this person, whoever they were, would just tell him instead.

 

\---------------------------

 

Mitchell was lying on the grass just looking at the sky when Connor found him. He sat down beside him and handed him a coke. Mitchell did his best not to blush when their finger’s brushed against each other. ‘So I’ve got an idea,’ Connor said.

‘Yeah?’

‘We’ve got capture the flag tomorrow. My cabin and Hades against your cabin and Apollo.’

‘I’m aware.’ Mitchell sat up and opened the can.

‘Is Piper constructing the battle plan?’

‘As always.’

‘So my plan is to have Nico sneak around the creek and come up to your flag from behind, through the woods. See if you can get Piper to post Will there to guard him, maybe in a tree or something so Nico can’t spot him. Then tell him he has to hold Nico until the game is over and _then_ _maybe_ we can forget about them in the woods for a few hours?’

‘You think that will work?’

‘It’s either that or maiming Nico so he has to stay in the infirmary again. I’m getting sick of those two dorks dancing around each other. Your choice.’

‘Wow. Okay. So as much as I _love_ how dedicated you are to the cause, there will be no maiming. I’ll talk to Piper and see what I can do.’

‘I knew I could trust you.’

‘So while we’re here, can I talk to you about something?’

‘Yes. What?’

‘Who are you crushing on?’

Connor ducked his head down between his knees for a few moments before he looked up at Mitchell. ‘Wouldn’t you like to know?’

‘I’m sorry to spring this on you, but I would actually. You can talk to me, you know. We’re friends.’

‘Yeah, that’s the problem, isn’t?’ Connor said before he got up and walked away, leaving a very confused Mitchell alone on the grass.

 

\---------------------------

 

‘So tonight’s game is nothing but a cover up to get Will and Nico alone in the woods together?’ Piper said and looked at him with amusement on her face.

‘Connor’s idea, not mine,’ Mitchell said with a shrug.

‘Actually I think he has a point. They’re long overdue for some meddling, those two, she said. I think we can make that happen. I’ll tell Will to keep Nico guarded wherever he finds him and then we can forget to tell them when it’s over. How about Drew and I go for the flag, guarded by some of the other archers like maybe Kayla and Austin? But I need you and your archery skills to guard the flag if we send Will away, too. I know Connor and Travis will try to get it either way.’

‘I know, I’m not stupid enough to think Connor won’t take advantage of the situation.’

‘No, you’re just stupid enough to not realize…’

The door busted open and Jason entered. Mitchell stood up from her bed.

‘We’ll continue this conversation tonight,’ she said with a smirk as he left. He did not really want to be alone with the couple in the cabin. Instead he went to try and find Connor again, but Travis was alone when he knocked on the door to the Hermes cabin.

‘Hi, is, uh, Connor here?’

‘No, sorry, Mitch. What’s up?’

‘Just tell him I stopped by and that it’s a go.’

‘A go?’

‘Yeah. Just tell him that. He’ll get it.’

Travis only shrugged. ‘Alright, man.’

 

\---------------------------

 

Will had tried to argue when Piper sent him away into the woods instead of letting him stay close to the flag but she had argued that she did not want to risk Nico coming anywhere near their flag and that if she knew the Stoll’s good enough they would have him sneak around to get it from behind. ‘They are thieves, after all,’ she said with her arms crossed over her chest.

‘Come on, Will,’ Mitchell agreed with his sister, ‘you know better than to expect a full on attack from those two.’

‘And besides, you know Nico best. You know how he moves and how his mind works. I don’t care how you do it, but do _not_ let him get near the flag pole. Bind him to a tree if you have too. The only one we have guarding the flag is Mitchell.’

‘So, no pressure then?’ Mitchell deadpanned.

‘You’ll be fine. I know you can handle Connor if he does make it here,’ Piper said with a dismissive hand gesture.

Will snorted. Mitchell glared at him. ‘What’s that supposed to mean, Solace?’

Will only shook his head and disappeared into the woods. The rest of their team dispatched and left Mitchell alone to guard the flag. He knew it would take a little while for anyone to come all this way so he sat down and rested his bow on his knees. Waiting. Listening. He was starting to get a little paranoid. Every little noise from the woods around him made him twitch. And then both the Stoll brothers came sauntering through the trees into the clearing. Mitchell was on his feet, knocking an arrow and pointing it at them.

‘Don’t come any closer.’

Travis held up his palms to Mitchell while Connor kept his hands in his pockets. He knew better than to trust a Stoll with the hands in his pockets. _What does it have in its pocketses?_ he thought and then snorted at his own geekiness before turning his attention back to his predicament. They both sported swords hanging from their belts. To be honest so did Mitchell but he knew he didn’t stand a chance against either one of them, let alone both at the same time. They were actually _good_ at sword fighting. He let the arrow fly and Connor barely dodged it.

‘Hey!’

‘I told you to stay back.’

‘Just give up the flag and no one has to get hurt,’ Travis said.

Mitchell notched another arrow and hit Travis in the leg. He knew it hurt even if the arrow was a dulled one. Not sharp enough to draw blood but it would leave a nasty bruise. His attention wavered when he heard crashes coming from the woods on his left and a second later Nico burst through the trees, Will hot on his heels. ‘What the frick, Solace? You were supposed to hold him off!’

Will was cherry red in his face. ‘He’s not playing fair!’ he pouted.

‘Oh, you should know that all is fair in love and war, Solace,’ Nico laughed. He turned to Mitchell. ‘We’ll be taking that flag, now.’

‘I had him for a moment, I swear!’ Will said.

‘Then why did you let him go?’

Mitchell fired another arrow at Connor to try and stop him in his tracks. The two archers were standing with their backs against the flagpole. ‘He kissed me,’ Will whispered.

‘He did what?!’ Mitchell exclaimed.

Connor and Travis started laughing like crazy. Nico blushed and so did Will.

‘It caught me off guard, okay? I kinda froze and he ran.’

‘Nicely done, Nico,’ Travis said.

Nico shrugged but Mitchell could see that he was affected too. On the inside he was fangirling about this new development but on the outside he still had two Stolls to fight. Two Stolls who looked at each other like they were having a silent conversation. Mitchell was scared about what that implied. Then several things happened at once. Connor took his hands out of his pockets and threw a flash grenade into the ground. The light incapacitated Mitchell and Will for long enough that Connor could tackle Mitchell to the ground and Nico could easily sidestep Will to grab the flag, throwing it like a football to Travis who started running, limping, towards their side of the arena. He caught it and disappeared among the trees. Connor was still pinning Mitchell to the ground so he wouldn’t be able to shoot his brother. He looked Mitchell in the eyes and Mitchell tried to not be affected by the situation but Connor Stoll was lying on top of him and his hips were pinning Mitchell’s hips to the ground and he just wanted to stay in this moment forever. Too soon Piper and his team mates were back, without a flag. Connor gave Mitchell a quick kiss on the cheek, rolled off him, stood up and pulled Mitchell to his feet. Mitchell watched him as he ran off towards his own cheering team mates, fingertips grazing the spot where Connor had kissed him. Will brought him out of his daze.

‘Sorry that didn’t really pan out the way we intended.’

‘Oh, I don’t know,’ Piper smirked. ‘I think it worked out quite well.’

 

\---------------------------

 

That night neither Will nor Nico was at the campfire and when Mitchell told Piper what Will had said happened she just smiled. Of course they weren’t at the campfire. They had more important matters to attend to.

‘How about you, though? You got a kiss too.’ She bumped their shoulders together. Mitchell looked across the camp fire to where Connor and Cecil was talking about something he couldn’t hear. The younger boy seemed agitated and Connor just looked… resigned.

‘Yeah, but that’s just because he’s… him. It didn’t mean anything,’ he sighed.

‘But you kinda wish that it did,’ she said.

He looked down at his feet and slumped his shoulders. ‘Yeah I kinda wish that it did.’

She put her arm around his shoulder. ‘You should tell him that.’

‘And risk losing a childhood friend? No.’

‘Oh, I don’t know. Maybe he’ll surprise you.’

Mitchell looked across the campfire to where Connor was sitting again. This time the other boy was watching him, grinning.

 

\---------------------------

 

The fourth of July. Mitchell woke up feeling great and for a good reason. Independence day was a party day at camp and with Chiron gone to Olympus for the weekend the only adult supervision the campers were left with was Apollo. Adult supervision. Right.

Connor had been hinting about booze and fireworks for days. Mitchell wasn’t sure those two should mix but Connor had assured him that it would be amazing. That only made Mitchell believe that Connor, booze and fireworks _really_ shouldn’t mix.

Mitchell got dressed in an empty cabin (so he had been dragging his feet a little that morning okay?) and when he checked himself out in their full-body mirror he gasped. His clothes were matching his hair. No literally. They all had the same pink that his bangs (courtesy of Connor Stoll) had, but he hadn’t noticed when he put them on. He sighed and dug out another pair of shorts and another t-shirt from his closet, making sure they looked normal. And they did. Until he put them on. As soon as they were on his body they turned pink too. And sparkly. What the…? He got an idea and went through his drawers until he found a tie and hung it around his neck as he watched it in the mirror. It took a couple of seconds but the tie turned pink too.  Perfect. This summer had been a never ending road of pranks.

Figuring that it didn’t really matter what he put on he left his cabin and headed for breakfast. People were giggling and pointing when he entered the pavilion. He couldn’t blame them. With the blue hair and the pink clothes he looked like cotton candy. When he sat down at his table, grumbling, his younger brother Castor looked at him with clear amusement on his face. ‘So I didn’t realize that pink cut-off jeans were a thing.’

‘It is if you’re called Stoll,’ Mitchell grumbled and started stabbing his pancake.

Castor laughed a little too loudly at this. Connor came sauntering over to his table. He sat down on the table-top in front of Mitchell and grinned. He grabbed Mitchell’s tie that he had forgotten to take off and played with it. ‘Well aren’t you pretty today, sweetness?’

Mitchell narrowed his eyes at Connor. ‘And no thanks to you I assume?’

‘Why I would never.’

‘Why do you keep doing this? Haven’t I suffered enough?’

Connor got a weird look on his face for a second but it was gone as soon as Mitchell realized it was there. The only thing he did feel was the same love that had been emanating from Connor all summer and that had him wondering who the hell Connor was crushing on. And then, finally, realization hit him like a brick wall. If Connor was radiating love now, when he was totally focused on Mitchell, then…

He needed to tell him. He needed to tell him that he was in love with him too and that he’d been hoping for this all summer but when he opened his mouth all that came out was:

‘Uhm…’

Because how do you tell your childhood friend that you’re in love with him? And then Connor was gone because Travis was dragging him out of there saying they had preparations to do. Punch to mix and fireworks to set up. Mitchell watched them leave wondering why he hadn’t seen it sooner. He desperately needed to talk to someone. Will. He desperately needed to talk to Will.

Will was, of course, with Nico. Ever since the two of them had figured out their feelings for each other they had been inseparable. Mitchell totally shipped it and it didn’t bother him the slightest that he couldn’t get his friend alone anymore. He was his mother’s son, after all. So Mitchell knocked on the Hades cabin and hoped against hope that they weren’t in the middle of each other. Literally.

They weren’t, but only because Nico was still in his pajamas. Will was his usual sunny self when he opened but Mitchell could hear Nico muttering obscenities behind the door.

‘Mitchell! What’s up?’

‘Uhm… I kind of need to talk to you.’

‘Do you wanna come in?’

‘I think that’s best.’

Will showed him that he should sit down on the bed so he did. Nico sat up and tried to rub the sleep from his eyes. Mitchell handed him the take away coffee cup that he brought from breakfast and Nico actually tried to smile. ‘Figured you’d still be in bed so…’

‘Thanks.’

‘Hey! Why don’t I get coffee?’ Will looked offended.

‘Because the last thing you need in the morning is coffee.’

‘I second that opinion,’ Nico said. Will then looked betrayed.

‘So, what’s up?’ he asked, sitting down next to Nico on the bed.

‘I think Connor’s in love with me,’ Mitchell blurted out. He was surprised when they both started smiling. No, not smiling. Grinning. Like Cheshire cats.

‘Took you long enough,’ Nico said.

‘You _knew_?’

‘It’s been fairly obvious for weeks,’ Will said.

‘Yes. I’m surprised it took you this long. Aren’t you supposed to be good at this shit?’

‘No. I’m an emotionally crippled son of Aphrodite. _Of course_ I’m good at this shit! I just didn’t think… I mean… Why me?’

‘Why not? Can you honestly tell me you haven’t felt _anything_ from him?’ Will asked.

‘I’ve felt plenty and I’ve spent weeks trying to figure out who but it didn’t hit me until this morning.’

‘I think that ability of yours are crippling you because you’ve been so focused on trying to figure it out that you haven’t seen the signs,’ Nico said.

‘What signs?’

‘The way he’s been pranking your ass off all summer. Leaving gifts on your bunk, memorizing everything you usually buy. Picking your pockets so that he can “find your lost stuff” all over camp and bring it to you. Blushing whenever you’re around. Looking at you with a dreamy expression in those big blue eyes of his…’

‘Incidentally the same expression you have in your eyes when you look at him,’ Will chimed in.

Mitchell groaned and flopped onto his back, ever the drama queen.

‘It has been quite amusing watching you two pinning after each other all summer and neither one daring to do anything about it.’ Nico said.

‘Yes, well, that seems to be a general theme here,’ Mitchell muttered.

‘Okay so it took us a while,’ Will said, ‘but we’re here now. You need to talk to him.’

‘No, you need to eat his face,’ Nico said, grinning.

‘Well aren’t you a romantic?’

‘That’s why you love me.’

‘Guys! Love life crisis here.’ Mitchell chimed in. ‘How do I do this? What do I tell him? When?’

‘Your mother would be so disappointed if she saw you now.’ Will shook his head.

‘Yes. I realize that. You’re not helping.’

‘Is he always this uptight about things?’ Nico asked Will.

‘I’m not uptight. I just like to be prepared.’

‘He’s always this uptight. I think dating Connor will be good for him.’

‘Also,’ Nico frowned,’ what’s with the outfit? Not that you’re not... uhm… _pretty_ or anything, but all pink? And… are you sparkling?’

‘This… this is why I’m freaking out. This is Connor. This!’

‘He cursed your clothes?’

‘No, Nico. He cursed _me_. Whatever I put on turns pink and sparkly until I take it off again.’

Nico handed him a black t-shirt with sculls on it and Mitchell slipped it on. It took it a couple of seconds to turn pink, the sculls glittering. ‘Oh he’s good,’ Nico said.

‘He’s too good for his own good,’ Mitchell muttered. Will laughed at him.

‘So you’re freaking out. This is Connor we’re talking about. You guys have known each other for years. Just… If you’re that nervous have a couple of drinks first and relax. It’s Independence day. Those two brothers have an amazing party planned. This is a perfect day for hooking up.’

Mitchell pulled off Nico’s shirt and handed it back to him, the shirt now black again. Okay, so having a drink and relaxing for a few hours before spilling his heart out to Connor didn’t sound like such a bad idea. The couple on the bed even decided to join him when he left the cabin and ventured up to the big house.

The party was in full swing and it wasn’t even lunch yet. The Stoll brothers were standing behind a makeshift bar serving people punch that tasted unmistakably of alcohol. Apollo was standing beside them handing out condoms and lube packets. He gave a handful to Mitchell with a smirk. ‘Better be safe than sorry, kiddo.’

Mitchell glanced at Connor and blushed deeply. Apollo caught his glance and handed him another handful of lube packets. ‘If that’s what you’re going for, then you need more lube. When engaging in anal intercourse one can never have enough lube,’ he said with a wink before turning to the couple beside Mitchell. ‘William, my dear boy! Care for some protection?’

Mitchell wasn’t quite clear on what to do with his hands full of condoms and lube so he shoved everything into his pockets just as Travis handed him a drink with a smirk on his face that could rival Apollo’s.

‘So, is it really wise to be handing out condoms and alcohol to kids?’ Mitchell said. Travis shrugged.

‘Apollo figured everyone would get down and dirty either way so better make sure they have protection. We do not want a camp full of babies this time next year. Chiron would never let us hear the end of it.’

‘No.’ Mitchell shook his head. ‘Thank the gods for homosexuality.’

‘Mhm. Mom once said she was happy Connor’s gay because then she only needed to worry about one of us knocking up teenage girls.’

‘Your mother sounds like a lovely woman.’

‘She is. You should meet her sometime.’ Travis winked and Mitchell thought he could see Connor blush behind him.

 

\---------------------------

 

The day went by in a haze of people, music, sunlight and punch. Mitchell tried to find Connor several times but he always came up short. By the time the sun had set he was considerably more drunk than he had intended to and Connor was still nowhere to be seen. Somehow he had lost track of his friends and his siblings too. The whole day was starting to weigh down on him and he found himself sitting on the steps to the big house trying to will the world to stop spinning. It wasn’t just the alcohol affecting him. There were too many people crowded around the big house and the hearth, drunk people that couldn’t control their emotions and drunk Mitchell sure as hell couldn’t shield himself from all of them. He had no clue how long he’d been sitting there when he felt a hand on each of his shoulders. Connor was kneeling in front of him, of course he was, and he looked into Mitchell’s eyes with a worried expression on his face.

‘Mitch, sweetness, you don’t look so good. Are you okay?’

Connor was combing his fingers through Mitchell’s hair and it was wonderful and soothing and Mitchell could feel the love radiating off of him. The only problem was it was too much. It was still too much and he was getting dizzier and even though he was sitting under the clear sky he felt trapped.

‘Sweetness, are you drunk?’

‘Too many people,’ he mumbled and rubbed his temples. He looked around with a panicked expression on his face. Connor seemed to get what he was trying to convey because he pulled Mitchell up on his feet and tried to drag him away from the party but Mitchell was frozen in his place, not able to move.

‘Con, there’s too many of them.’ He was scared now. All of these people and all of their feelings were surrounding him like fog and he couldn’t breathe, he couldn’t move and his heart raced in his chest.

‘Okay, you’re never drinking again,’ Connor stated as he picked Mitchell up bridal style and started walking. He went down to the beach and didn’t stop. He walked all the way out onto the pier and then he leaped into the cold water with Mitchell still in his arms.

They resurfaced spluttering and coughing but Mitchell could finally think, finally breathe and Connor was beside him in the water and he couldn’t help himself. He grabbed onto Connor’s cheeks and hoped that Connor would hold them both afloat while he leaned in and gave him a kiss. It was way too eager and sloppy but he didn’t care about that. All he cared about was Connor’s soft lips on his and how his eyes glittered in the moonlight. Connor’s eyes widened when he realized that Mitchell was, in fact, kissing him and then he finally kissed him back. When Mitchell had to pull back to breathe Connor started swimming towards the beach.

They got out of the water and sat down on the grass. They were wet but not cold since it was a warm night. Connor took Mitchell’s hand and looked down on it when he said: ‘So, uhm… that happened.’

‘It did. Thank you.’

‘It’s nothing.’

‘It’s not nothing. I was legit panicking back there.’

Connor pulled out a can of coke from his shorts. _Is there_ anything _he doesn’t have in there?_ Mitchell thought. ‘Here. You should drink this.’

Mitchell did as he was told. He understood that he needed to drink something other than alcohol and coke _was_ his favorite after all, but of course Connor knew this. He knew everything. Connor watched as he downed the drink and tried to hide a burp, then he said: ‘So… uhm… are we…?’

Mitchell thought it was really cute how he was too scared to say the word. _Boyfriends_. He looked at Connor with a smile and leaned in to kiss him again. This time it was better. He cupped Connor’s face in his hands and licked his bottom lip, asking for entrance and Connor gave him that, tilting his head so they could deepen the kiss. Desire pooled in Mitchell and he slipped his hand under Connor’s tank top which made Connor gasp. Connor palmed him through his jeans and Mitchell moaned, louder than he intended but he didn’t care if people heard. He was way past that point and probably still a little drunk. Then he noticed that Connor was shivering. He pulled away from the kiss and leaned his head on Connor’s shoulder.

‘Are you cold?’ He mumbled into his neck.

‘A little.’

Mitchell stood up and held his hand out to Connor.

‘Come on then.’

‘Where are we going?’

‘You’re cold and I probably look like a panda bear so I’m thinking a hot shower.’

‘T.. together?’

‘Well if you have somewhere else you’d rather be…?’

Connor shook his head and grabbed Mitchell’s hand, pulling himself up. Then he continued to pull Mitchell along behind him through the party and into the shower building.

**Author's Note:**

> If there's anything you want to read like, hit me up here or @makerofaqueen on tumblr I'll take Conhell prompts for you guys.


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